Day 8 - First Signs of Attachment

We went to the transition home on Friday morning with Jenny Burke, who is picking up her daughter forever!  YEA!  Jenny took some pictures for us during her court trip, so it is awesome to get to meet her!  

Zane, Mark, and I played together and Zane learned that he can look at the guard and the pharmacist errand-runner over the railing.  He thought it was so funny to have Daddy on the other side of the railing peeking at him. It's the small things that delight a child!  Zane is very happy with any type of interactive play.  He loves to move and be involved with us doing something.  At the same time, he loves to discover something and figure it out independently.  We walked over to the playground and he found an old formula can in the dirt.  He picked it up, put his hand in it, and Mark tried to teach him the word, "empty".  Then Mark turned it over and showed him how to play on it like a drum.  Zane liked this and he tried to make rhythms on it for about an hour.  His nanny saw us and brought out a toy piano (the old kind with the colored keys that ding a bell inside).  The paint had been chipped off the metal plates, but it still rang like it should.  So, the Brannans formed an impromptu band in the middle of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.  Zane played the drums, Mama played the piano, and Daddy pretended to play a trumpet through a small plastic piece found on the ground.  What was the first song we taught Zane?  The Mardi Gras Second Line song, of course!!!  Ha!  We were laughing so hard that this is the song that came to mind first!  

After playing, Zane ate a snack - his favorite, oatmeal.  It's full of cinnamon and sugar I think.  When I've been feeding him, I've been trying to get him to make eye-contact with me.  I raise the spoon in the air, say his name, and he looks in my eyes.  This is good for attachment and bonding because he realizes I will take care of his needs.  Friday, I got him to look in my eyes almost every time he took a bite.  It was great.  I think he's understanding that I am his mama.  He attempts to say Mama and Daddy; however, he uses them interchangably with us, so I'm not totally sure if he understands what that means.  We try to use Amharic to explain who we are.  I think the staff here likes that we are trying to learn Amharic and use it with him.  In Amharic, Father is Ababa and Dad is Ebaye.  Mama is emaye.  The nannies try to use English with them some, so Mama and Daddy are used as well.  I think he's starting to get it.

Zane is on a great schedule.  As soon as he finished eating, he started to fall asleep.  His eyes started to close, so I tried to make him comfortable.  Before he was fully asleep, our guides and driver said it was time to go, so I had to hand him over to his nanny.  He screamed and cried and reached out for me.  It was so hard to walk away, but the fact that he was wanting to stay with me was a great sign that he is attaching to me.  It was good to see.

After spending time with Zane, we went to the Post Office area to shop for Ethiopian souveniers and gifts.  We plan to give Zane these gifts as he gets older to keep him informed of his culture.  We then went to look at the place I will be moving to when I'm able to take Zane from the transition home.  It is a nice spacious place on the southwest side of the city.  I felt very comfortable there, and I know it will be a good place to stay until the embassy clears our case.

We are still praying for MOWCYA to expedite letters at a quick rate, and for the embassy to find no need to futher investigate our case.  Please continue to pray with us.  We'll update you on the legal stuff as soon as we find out!